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Common Sense Media says

Users say

A real ESRB worker's opinion

I am A ESRB worker. Off the job i think this game is go for 13+ as long as the teen knows it is just a game and is mature enough to handle the violence. This game actually teaches teens what not to do with the KARMA system. This game has gotten a lot of smack for being a really bad game but it really isnt unless the conditions are right. Over all this game isnt that violent on average. As ESRB workers it is our job to honestly review games and this is my honest review. A lot of us post our true feelings about games outside of work.

The Pinnacle of Joy

I remember seeing the trailers for this game. As a fan of the previous two Fallout games, I could only hope for the best. And I hoped correctly. Fallout 3 is hands down one of the best games of all time for the Xbox 360. The game follows the story of a world thrown into disarray some centuries after a nuclear holocaust that threatens humanity. The player starts out as a member of Vault 101 (just one of hundreds of vaults spread across the wastelands). The vaults are a ironic sanctuary for the people of the time: they offer the only protection and boast freedom of self, only to be a prison of the mind, soul, and body, and completely unsafe (gangs, bribery, violence, etc.). However, certain events take place, and the player is set off onto an adventure across the lands, the entire world open to their imaginations. Basically, this is how the game works: If you can see it, you can go to it. The entire game is one open world environment (only incremental load times between inside and outside places). You can literally walk all the way across the Wasteland, North to South, East to West, without hitting any loading screens. You will not be unopposed on your adventure, however. There are uncountable enemies prowling every inch of the wastes, from annoying RadRoaches, to Super Mutant Behemoths and Death Claws (with a name like that, just run). The player will also encounter various communities across the world, which is where the basis of the gameplay is. Sure, this may look like a FPS/RPG, and you're D#@! right it is. But it goes so much deeper than that. The core of the game is interacting with this new world, getting the feel of the people, becoming a human fit for this new earth; everything you do affects you, everything you live for is at stake. Nothing in this game goes without consequence, as the honor system is ranked by your "Karma" (the better it is, the more good characters will interact with you on a deeper level, and vice versa). The graphics are unbelievably realistic, with the entire landscape looking as though the artists carved each rock, pixel by pixel. Skin textures could use a little tweaking for those with lower resolution televisions, but seriously, if you don't have an HDTV by now, get with the times. The voice acting is phenomenal!...well except for maybe one character you'll meet in Girdershade (trust me, you'll know when you find her). The combat is pretty decent in real-time (the physics are a bit odd, as you can shoot someone point blank with virtually no response from the occasional "AH!"); but VATS is where it's at. VATS is a Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System, where the player can focus in on any individual area of an enemy, queue up multiple attacks, and let loose a maelstrom of violence. When coupled with the Bloody Mess perk, where attacks become increasingly violent (and therefore increasingly AWESOME), there are just those moments where your jaw drops from pure, maniacal, delight. But overall the violence is only moderate compared to other games (i.e. F.E.A.R., SMOD, UT3, etc.). Parents, if you love a good adventure (over 100 hours of game-play if you're into it), and you want your child to be delighted, then delve into Fallout 3 from Bethesda Studios.

Just a heads-up

If you're a particularly computer savvy parent and wouldn't mind your child enjoying this along with you but have an issue with the ULTRA violence, there is an active modding community out there that make mods to tone down the brutal dismemberments, head explosions and blood sprays.

A great game for a kid/adult who understands it isn't real.

I love this game! I go to my friends house and he showed it to me and it's fantastic. I don't have an xbox, I have a Wi, but this game is worth playing for hours and hours. There is a lot of violence, so I would understand why my parents might not get it for me. I love it.

Amazing RPG/Shooter for 14 and up!

This is my favorite video game, period. It's simply amazing in every way. Warning: parents, this game is Extremely Gorey. You can blow anybodies head off with a shotgun in slow motion and it shows chunks of the head, or the head exploding (even though you don't want to do that with ANYBODY, as killing just anybody unprovoked will lower your karma and others will attack you), as well as other limbs as well. There's also some language, sexual references, and you can use drugs. Oh, and one more thing. You can either be an angel in this game, or absolutely downright EVIL! The game sometimes gives you outrageous text options. The only people you can't kill, are children, but that's it.

Fine for 13+.

This game is one of the best in this generation of games. This game will easily, easily last you more than 60 hours long. Me and my child switched off nonstop, eager to see what would await each of our characters next. Whether we were exploring a dead military base full of robotic enemies and super mutants, or while we were exploring the broken down White House to find the president's office, we had fun 100% of the way.
Fallout 3 is not for children. I'll give you that. But Fallout 3 is a very, very fun game, and you shouldn't be sheltering your child from this experience. The game is bloody, but you can turn off the blood and gore on specific systems. (PC, and 360, I believe) The game also has quite a bit of language, but if your child is above 13, they've heard all of it.
I'm pretty tired of hearing people scream and yell that their child's mind will be poisoned from M rated video games. While I do agree this game is not suitable for ages 10 or under, easily a 13 or 14 year old could play it with no problems. There's no sexual content from what I could find, (and I explored everywhere) and there are some virtual drugs in the game you can take to enhance your abilities, but you risk getting addicted. The messages can either be positive or negative, because the game works with a morality system. If you're nice to people all around, they'll be nice to you. But being bad has many perks, as does being nice.
Overall, this game is perfect, and one of the finest games this generation. It feels totally worth the 60 dollars I paid, (as you can play it for an upwards of 60 hours, and not get bored) and parents, you shouldn't let your child miss out on this title.

Get this game, if not for your kid, then for you.

This game is possibly the most intelligent game to be released within the last decade. It's about an alternate, relatively near future fallout that occurred in 2077 and the aftermath, where the real storyline lies, 200 years later. The game is very open and you can do practically anything. Drugs, murder, all that stuff. However, there are limits due to the fact that sex and disturbing criminal content are no-nos in console games. So, you can't have sex, nor can you murder children. The sad thing is, the second one (I know, you're probably mad at me by now) was a huge part of the KARMA system of the first two games. If you killed children, people would hate you and you'll be attacked by people. And, don't think this is GTA where the only consequence is being chased by some cops with a deathwish; every decision in Fallout has it's subsequent consequence. For example, pickpocketing and being caught occasionally will make people distrust you, being rude in dialogue will make people dislike you, sometimes the entire course of the game can be changed through a decision. (you have the opportunity to nuke an entire town) The gore level is indeed high. If it weren't for the VATS slow-motion pin-point targeting, this thing wouldn't be horribly gory, but you can shoot somebody point-blank with a shotgun in slow-motion, complete with blood splatter and head explosion. Good news is, if you have a PC, you can easily cure this with various mods (recommended: Gore Tweak) and a settings fix. In fact, you PC gamers out there struck it pretty lucky. If you want nudity, (or sexier underwear, or just a more well-detailed character model in general) get mods. You want more gore, mods. You want LESS gore, mods. You want a hideout under the gas station in Springvale, mod that stuff. But, that should go out as a warning to stricter parents: YOUR KIDS (with the proper mods) CAN KILL CHILDREN AND BE A PROSTITUTE. So, beware of that. But don't keep your kids from experiencing this game, it's not nearly as bad as the world outside your door. There's plenty of room for discussion about things like drug use, cause-and-effect, and moral predicaments. Also, there's swearing. But I think compared to the gory murder and drunkenness that seems a bit petty.

the true review of fallout 3

I've played Fallout 3 and I'm fourteen. Yes, fallout 3 is violent and the story is dark,Yes, there is language but is used very rarely. Now the story, Our ol' nation turned into a nuclear wasteland, the player lives inside a peaceful vault with his father and the other residents. But your father escapes from the vault and goes out in the "wastes" as the player escapes from the vault to look for his father and explore this world. To tell you this game is violent and by violent I mean EXTREME violence but if you know your child can handle it then there is no problem. My dad and me both played the game with our accounts on the 360. My dad knew that I can handle this and trust me I've seen a lot worse then this.

Awesome! But gory.

This game is amazing and it is definitely an essential for any true gamer. It is very gory and you can blow heads off and limbs while blood is sputing everywhere. There is not any drugs, but there is beer and whiskey. The gore is very gross sometimes. It is a great game.

Fallout 3 is a MUST PLAY!

This game is incredible! Amazing graphics, amazing storyline, this game is just beyond perfect! You have a bunch of secrets to unlock in this game it is honestly one of the best games I have ever played in my entire life. The whole Fallout series intrests me so much. To the families out there, you MUST play this game (if you like RPG's) You have the choice of being Evil or Good each Karma Choice has its own story to it. It has a various amount of choices in dialouge. Amazing game don't miss out on this one.

Eh its violent. Pretty much like every game on ps3.

Yeahhh. Sure its violent. BUT. Its designed to be violent. So if it doesn't exactly look appropiate. YOU don't buy it. Headshots in slo mo are wicked and gore galore. Don't like violence. again DO NOT BUY IT. Simple as.

The Best Game, For A Limited Crowd

Normally I wouldn't review a video game, and truthfully I only registered to talk about this one. For starters, the violence can be intense, even for my age. It's around that of Dead Rising, but not as bad as the movie the Patriot. I'd say this game is for high school sophmores-seniors, that know the difference between a game and real life. Face it, if your kids don't know that by now, don't even let them get a permit. The reason I like this game is for the plot (but the violence helps with stress relief), and it's message. The hyper violence is realistic, and shows what the world could be like if the Cold War ended as many people expected it to end. This game is Mad Max for the next generation, and it doesn't hide it at all. I believe the Karma system works well, as you are berated for your wrong doings on the games radio, or you are brought up as a hero if you don't. The game does have notably less law and order, unlike Oblivion where if you do something wrong you go to jail. If any real lesson could be learned from Fallout it's why we need a goverment, and that hope survives no matter how messed up the world becomes.

Fallout Is a Must Have

Fallout 3 is a must have... Probably even better than New Vegas because it doesnt require as much time to keep your character alive... Parents should not be concerned about this game because most of the game requires exploring

Good game, Too Violent

This game is my favorite, but has a lot of cussing and more blood and violence than any game I have. It has more drugs and alcohol than any game I have heard of. But, in this game there is good, bad, and neutral "karma." It is based on the decisions you make. Kill the orphan, leave the orphan alone, or adopt the orphan. If you make good decisions, the game has a lot of positive messages and good role models. But if you make bad decisions, it can be the goriest, most violent, foul language using game on the planet. If your kid can make good decisions, I think they could handle it at 13 years old.

its dark

great game, however its bloody and intense. so make sure your kid is used to that kind of thing. the real disturbing factor lies in exploration. if you look hard enough, there something that can creep anyone out. especially vaults. originally advertised as shelters from nuclear war, they actually are deranged experiments that the government did. a prime example is vault 106 i believe. the government unleashed a chemical into the air that causes insanity and hallucinations. you get to explore the place and inhale the chemical in the process. certainly a chilling experience. so just be careful and you'll be fine

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